Whats a safe smoking distance from an Oxygen Concentrator?

FishOil wrote:The doctor gave me a Bipap with an Everflo Oxygen Concentrator and it says No Smoking on it, but there are people in my house that smoke. Whats the safest distance they can smoke away from my room? Should I close the door when they do?

I have one of those, too. If I recall correctly, it's about 3000 yards.

I will not condone smoking with or without O2 but

archangle wrote:i.e. if you take off the machine, and go into the next room and brush against a cigarette, you may turn into the human torch.

is extremely EXTREME. lmbo

As previously mentioned O2 is not itself flammable or how could you have a pilot light or even light a match? After all the room is FULL of O2, is it not?

O2 aids in combustion but is not explosive.

I have seen many people smoking while wearing their nasal canula with the O2 ON. Not smart, I agree, but please let's avoid pure panic.

The thing about the oxygen is that it supports and feeds a flame. The more of it in a room, the better a fire will burn or the better a spark will be able to grow. It's a source of fuel. Smoke going into a Oxygen Concentrator will not cause it to catch fire. A lighted match in a room with someone on Oxygen, or a Concentrator in use will not make it go boom.

However, what does happen is that the bedding, the drapes, the Pajamas of the person on oxygen, and even the clothing of the spouse of the person next to the one on O2 pick up a higher oxygen content than they normally would. This means that the beding of a person who uses supplemental oxygen at night will burn faster and better than the bedding in a bedroom of a person who does not use supplemental oxygen. This is probbly a moot point if your bed is on fire. Of course the supplemental oxygen would influnce how quickly that fire consumes the bed. But then so would the thread count of the sheets, the fabrics, and the quilting of the bed it'self.

A flame will follow a fuel source. And oxygen is a fuel source. Don't smoke with a cannula in, because hey there be a steady source of fuel right at your nose. Don't use any type of flame in a room that normally sees oxygen use because the entire room, from the drapes to the carpet will support a flame better and burn quicker. (if set aflame that is) And while a Concentrator does not add more O2 to a room, it does put a higher concentration around the person using the oxygen.

The thing that a lot of people here are trying to stress however, is beside the fact that the area is more combustable. Smoking around others is deadly. And if you need Supplemental Oxygen, then there is probbly a good reason for not adding second hand smoke into the mix. Your lungs will thank you. Not to mention the fact that you will never get the smell out of your xPap. ugh.

I saw an old lady the other day with oxygen tubes in her nose and the bottle in her lap while she was sitting in a wheel chair. She was smoking a cigarette.

NotMuffy wrote:

FishOil wrote:Okay so 10 hours after turning it off should be safe then is what I'm getting?

No, what you should be getting is those smokers the #&@% out of your house.

Second hand smoke is harmful to your health:

Low levels of smoke exposure, including exposures to secondhand tobacco smoke, lead to a rapid and sharp increase in dysfunction and inflammation of the lining of the blood vessels, which are implicated in heart attacks and stroke.

Why do you need supplemental oxygen? Did the second-hand smoke cause the problem? Or did you smoke too?

Do you have a copy of your Pulmonary Function Test?

While second hand smoke is harmful to healthy people, you are undoubtedly at even greater risk.

I have to agree with this. I have a long history of having a hard time with secondhand smoke. I'm on oxygen at night, and pretty much flunked a recent PFT. At this stage of my health, living with someone who smokes is a non-negotiable--even if it were my spouse of 40 years. If the smoking didn't stop immediately, I'd kick them out, or move out if kicking them out is not an option. It might feel rude and be difficult psychologically, but if someone were putting poison in the eggs each morning because they liked them that way, would you eat them without objection so as not to upset people?

FishOil wrote:Okay so 10 hours after turning it off

The article warned about a 10 minute safety period.

I can't claim to be a real expert on O2 concentrator fire hazards. I just know oxygen can turn ordinary flammable objects into roman candles. Look at this youtube video of a cigarette in liquid oxygen.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t48QWjtoVfw

Now, that is liquid oxygen, which is a lot more concentrated than oxygen concentrator oxygen, but hopefully you get the idea.

Just my guess, but be sure to keep the smokers from walking into the room with O2 on or leaving the O2 room and going near a smoker yourself without a 10 minute margin. Either 10 minutes after the O2 is off or 10 minutes after the cigarette has been put out.

I got a spark on a cotton T shirt once and didn't notice till a couple of minutes later that it was still smoldering a bit. You wouldn't want someone smoking a cigarette in the next room to put it out, then walk in to your room without noticing they're carrying a "spark" in their shirt.

Think of yourself as having a little gasoline on you and your clothes while you're using O2 and it takes a few minutes to evaporate.

I'd be real sure no ashtrays are in the room. Preferably be sure no one ever smokes in that room. You wouldn't want there to be an ember smoldering in the ashtray or elsewhere.

Yeah, the second hand smoke is bad for you. I understand you're more concerned about flaming death at the moment.

Presumably, the BiPap machine blows air, diluting the O2 concentration to something a little less dangerous than pure oxygen. However, what if there's a leak in the hose, etc.? Or the BiPap shuts down and you don't wake up immediately and are getting pure O2.

Maybe we're being a little over cautious. Maybe not. Be careful until you figure out what the real risks are. Unfortunately, one thing we know is that you can't trust your DME's advice to be correct.

Jordy wrote:The thing about the oxygen is that it supports and feeds a flame. The more of it in a room, the better a fire will burn or the better a spark will be able to grow. It's a source of fuel. Smoke going into a Oxygen Concentrator will not cause it to catch fire. A lighted match in a room with someone on Oxygen, or a Concentrator in use will not make it go boom.

However, what does happen is that the bedding, the drapes, the Pajamas of the person on oxygen, and even the clothing of the spouse of the person next to the one on O2 pick up a higher oxygen content than they normally would. This means that the beding of a person who uses supplemental oxygen at night will burn faster and better than the bedding in a bedroom of a person who does not use supplemental oxygen. This is probbly a moot point if your bed is on fire. Of course the supplemental oxygen would influnce how quickly that fire consumes the bed. But then so would the thread count of the sheets, the fabrics, and the quilting of the bed it'self.

A flame will follow a fuel source. And oxygen is a fuel source. Don't smoke with a cannula in, because hey there be a steady source of fuel right at your nose. Don't use any type of flame in a room that normally sees oxygen use because the entire room, from the drapes to the carpet will support a flame better and burn quicker. (if set aflame that is) And while a Concentrator does not add more O2 to a room, it does put a higher concentration around the person using the oxygen.

The thing that a lot of people here are trying to stress however, is beside the fact that the area is more combustable. Smoking around others is deadly. And if you need Supplemental Oxygen, then there is probbly a good reason for not adding second hand smoke into the mix. Your lungs will thank you. Not to mention the fact that you will never get the smell out of your xPap. ugh.

Oxygen is NOT a fuel source, it Supports combustion, that also lowers the temturature of when ignition occures. Normal O2 room levels are about 20% of the air in the room, the O2 pump takes that O2 from the room air and supplies O2 to the patient at whatever purity the pump supplies usually 90 t0 95 % O2. Jim

NotMuffy wrote: Why do you need supplemental oxygen? Did the second-hand smoke cause the problem? Or did you smoke too?
Do you have a copy of your Pulmonary Function Test?
While second hand smoke is harmful to healthy people, you are undoubtedly at even greater risk.

I don't know why I need supplemental oxygen, the doctor just prescribed it for me after my sleep study along with a Bipap for my sleep apnea. They don't smoke tobacco and I have never even had a cigarette in my life. The most tobacco second hand smoke I get is when I go to a bar and people smoke there. I don't even know what a Pulmonary Function Test is let alone have a copy of it.

nanwilson wrote:To but it bluntly............NO ONE should be allowed to smoke in your house............if its not your house and you are just renting.........get to HELL out of there NOW!

I can't kick them out and I don't have the money to move out. Poor college student.
I was not given any signs or told anything about smoking by the guy.
So if I'm walking gasoline after waking up, I can't go into the kitchen and cook breakfast for a while?
Nobody smokes in my room either

You're college AGE or just IN college? I'm truly surprised that you're on oxygen and clearly you need a better explanation of WHY you are on it.

Your Bi Pap will pick up the smoke smell even if they are in the next room. That smell STAYS in the machine. You must change your filters OFTEN.

kempo wrote:I saw an old lady the other day with oxygen tubes in her nose and the bottle in her lap while she was sitting in a wheel chair. She was smoking a cigarette.

In my town in North Carolina, that's not an unusual sight at all!
Everyone smokes here (PTL, not me)

SleepingUgly wrote:You're college AGE or just IN college? I'm truly surprised that you're on oxygen and clearly you need a better explanation of WHY you are on it.

I am 24 and in college living in an apartment with some roommates. Nobody really told me why I "need" oxygen. The person came and delivered it and brought in the huge thing and I was like wtf I thought I was just getting a cpap and he said "the doctor prescribed this too."

LSAT wrote:Your Bi Pap will pick up the smoke smell even if they are in the next room. That smell STAYS in the machine. You must change your filters OFTEN.

Can it pick it up even if I can't smell it all the way in my room? They don't use papers so the smell goes away after a while. But I guess you guys would know more than me.

FishOil wrote:The doctor gave me a Bipap with an Everflo Oxygen Concentrator and it says No Smoking on it, but there are people in my house that smoke. Whats the safest distance they can smoke away from my room? Should I close the door when they do?

You say that the Doctor "gave (you) a bipap"
I'm curious, are you using the bipap yet?

Yeah for about a week

GumbyCT wrote:I will not condone smoking with or without O2 but

archangle wrote:i.e. if you take off the machine, and go into the next room and brush against a cigarette, you may turn into the human torch.

is extremely EXTREME. lmbo

As previously mentioned O2 is not itself flammable or how could you have a pilot light or even light a match? After all the room is FULL of O2, is it not?

O2 aids in combustion but is not explosive.

I have seen many people smoking while wearing their nasal canula with the O2 ON. Not smart, I agree, but please let's avoid pure panic.

It's a question of oxygen concentration.

In 0% oxygen, cigarettes, charcoal, or cotton clothing don't burn.
In 20% oxygen, cigarettes, charcoal, or cotton clothing burn slowly or may even go out.
In 100% oxygen, cigarettes burn like road flares. Charcoal goes off like fireworks. Cotton clothing burns furiously. Vaseline may spontaneously ignite.

No, oxygen itself doesn't burn. It can turn barely flammable substances into highly flammable items. Or even turn things that won't burn at normal oxygen levels into highly flammable substances.

Look again at the video of what liquid oxygen does to a cigarette. Normal cigarette, excess oxygen. (Yes, LOX is more concentrated than 100% atmospheric oxygen, but the difference is just the oxygen.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t48QWjtoVfw